Rorraparooza Day 2/3

....and we're back.

On the way back to Grant Park we walked through Millenium Park to check out the Bean.

The Bean. It's so shiny.

I don't really get this whole Bean thing. Why a Bean? I read the wikipedia article and there's no mention of the reason for the design. Maybe I should stop using wikipedia as my sole source for information. I'd be a horrible college student given the current availability of wiki articles. 

Lollapalooza actually consists of something like 7 different stages for bands to play on. Two main stages and several smaller side stages for up and coming artists. The Playstation one was host to a number of good bands like Cage the Elephant the Deftones. 

The main headliner for Saturday night was good ole Eminem. Oh and btw the other headliner on Friday night was Coldplay. I kept yelling "where's Chris Martin" and "When does Coldplay" start at the Muse concert and people kept giving me dirty looks. I think it was funny for the first 2 minutes. Too bad I did it for about 8.

The Recovery album being hyped. We didn't bother getting close to the stage.

I don't get the E being backwards. is Eminem going the Toys R' Us route?

This just reminds me of the scene from Indiana Jones: Temple of Doom.

Shot of Eminem from the big screen. He's starting to look like Elijah Wood. Well, after rocking out to the King of white rappers it was time for dinner. 

Fish and chips for the SO's sister. 

I wanted some sausages in my mouth. Oh yeah. Juicy sausages in my mouth. 

What time is it?

Guinness time!

I don't even remember what the SO got. I think there's a picture of it somewhere but I forgot to download it and I'm too lazy to go and re-download it so you get a picture of dessert. 

Some weird fig concoction. 

Full of food and tired from the day we crashed and got ourselves rested for Day 3. 

Once again, the early day lineup of Lollapalooza was just mediocre so it was sightseeing time. 

I read online about the Chicago architecture tour so we headed off on a 90 minute tour. This might get boring for those of you not into buildings. 

The Trump Tower. Even the tour guide was surprised it turned out pretty decent. She was telling us how people wanted to dislike it because of who it was associated with but couldn't. 

More buildings. 

A-Ha. A bridge. Just to spice up the tour. 

This place would look perfect in Amsterdam too. Bet it looks funnier when you're high as a kite. You know, like when you're really high up in the air.

The late 90s and 2000s saw a huge real estate boom in Chicago and a lot of old warehouses were converted into condos. 

You can immediately tell which buildings were conversions because they always tack on a balcony. Some of the balconies don't look very safe but whatever, at least they look nice. 

The Sears/Willis Tower in the background. Looks like Batman. 

Duh-nuh-nuh-nuh-Duh-nuh-nuh-nuh Sears Tower!!!

Marina city. Looks like a giant corn on the cob. 

The Chicago skyline from afar. Definitely a beautiful site and a MUCH better downtown than LA. 

Yeah. I think some cities in the midwest have better downtowns than LA. We can boast that we have like 5 freeways all intersecting at downtown. The 60, 10, 110, 101, 5. Oh wait that's a horrible idea. 

Anyways, that was the Chicago weekend. In about two weeks I'm back in LA and then two weeks after that it's the wedding of the century for me. Mine. Wedding of the century because I'm hoping to only have one. *Crosses fingers*. 

Did you miss me?

I hope you did. It's been a crazy week at work and this blog is currently #4 on the priority list. 1-3 tangentially related to wedding stuff.

Anyways, to mark the return of the blog post, it's a full pictorial tour of my Lollapalooza weekend.

Since I'm lazy, here's the wiki info on "Lollapalooza".

Lollapalooza (/ˌlɒləpəˈluːzə/) is an annual music festival featuring popular alternative rock, heavy metal, punk rock and hip hop bands, dance and comedyperformances, and craft booths. It has also provided a platform for non-profit and political groups. Lollapalooza has featured a diverse range of bands and has helped expose and popularize artists such as Red Hot Chili Peppers, Pearl Jam, The Latin (Manny and Gil), The Cure, Primus, The Killers, Rage Against the Machine, Arcade Fire, Nine Inch Nails, Jane's Addiction, Metallica, X Japan, Soundgarden, Siouxsie & the Banshees, The Smashing Pumpkins, Muse,Alice in Chains, Tool, Hole, 30 Seconds to Mars, The Strokes, The Foo Fighters, Lady Gaga and the Starlight Revue, and Green Day.

It's basically a big ass music festival and since 2005 it's been held at Grant Park in Chicago.

Side note: The word Lollapalooza, a shibboleth, was also used by the American Army to ferret out possible Japanese spies. Apparently the "L's" were too hard to pronounce and it sounded like Rorraparooza. I'm totally raffing out roud.

Anyways, I bounced out of work at 1pm to head out to Chicago to meet up with the SO and her sister. I've mentioned it before but the SO is a gigantic Muse fan. She's been to like umpteen concerts and keeps talking about Matt Bellamy. Apparently I'm still #1 but the margin between Matt and I keeps shrinking. That bastard.

It was the 20th anniversary of the festival so the nifty wristbands made sure to let us know.

The Rorraparooza, ahem, I mean Lollapalooza sign outside the main entrance.

The Chicago skyline. This was my 2nd visit to Chicago and we've been pretty lucky with the weather. This time around it was humid but highs topped out in the mid 80s and it was pretty spectacular until Sunday afternoon. Chicago in the summer is amazing and I love the city. It's too bad 90% of the time the weather sucks harder than a Dyson.

AMERICUHH*!!

*Courtesy of the Belgians and Brazilians.

Because we were primarily there to see Muse we made sure to line up early to get a good viewing spot. The roadies were doing the sound check while desperately hoping that some groupie comes up to them for some "backstage access".

The crowd was starting to get bigger as we approached showtime. It was a LOT of white people. Now I know what it feels like to be the white guy at UC Irvine. 

In case you were wondering what event this was. With the amount of weed wafting through the air I thought it was the Up in Smoke tour. 

We were were pretty close to the stage but if you wanted to check out the pores of the artists they had huge HD screens. 

And the show begins.....

Matt Bellamy admiring his work.

Clap Clap Clap Clap. Everyone in unison!!

Turn down your speakers on this one. We were so close to the speakers that it totally overwhelmed my phone's mic. 

I wasn't a big fan of Muse before this concert. To be honest I thought their music was just okay and I made fun of the SO for liking them so much. This concert totally changed things for me. I absolutely loved their music. I set my Pandora station to include Muse and I'm totally digging songs like City of Delusion. Anyways, it was an awesome concert and as the SO put it, "Best Muse concert ever". Since it was the only one I've seen I guess I have to agree. 

To cap the night we had some healthy food. Steak quesadillas, buffalo wings, nachos and beer. Why? That's how we roll. Fatties through and through. 

The day lineup for Lollapalooza wasn't spectacular so we combined a walking tour with lunch at Gibsons Steakhouse. 

You can imagine where most people stood when they took a picture. The best was an older gentleman who decided to look up and open his mouth real wide. Why would you want those juices?!?!

The Chicago Tribue building has these rocks from various famous sites. Basically the reporters from the Tribune stole historical pieces and brought them back to be incorporated into the building. Nice. 

Hey look Egyptian government. Here's a rock from your Great Pyramid. What are you going to do about it? Cry and whine? The Tribune is like the douchebag frat brother taunting the Tri-Lambs.

Finally arrived at Gibsons hungry and ready to chow down. But first...

A ginger beer and vodka cocktail. Delicious. 

Goose Island beer. 

Some sort of mint infused cocktail. I forgot what it was. It was sweet and vodka-y. 

Started off with some oysters. You know, to get the appetite going. 

Guess which fatty decided to get a filet mignon at 1pm. Yeah the SO. 

I, of course, was not going to be upstaged by the SO and the SO's sister's French Dip sandwich so I got a steak sandwich.  

5 minutes later...

After "lunch", which probably had enough nutritional value for two days, we were off to Grant Park to start the 2nd day of festivities....To be Lollapalooza'ed till midweek. 

What happened to our music?

The other night I happened to catch VH1's top 100 hip hop songs while running on the treadmill. I caught it from Top 15 to Top 1 and ended up running 20 minutes longer than usual. 

I'm a sucker for nostalgia. I love 80's and 90's pop culture and still think that stuff from that era beats out anything produced in the 2000s. My feelings about music is the same. The SO makes fun of me for listening to current pop but it's really just filler music for me. My favorites come from the 80's and 90's and VH1's list did not disappoint. 

15 Eminem - "Stan"

14 Tupac - "I Get Around"

13 Wu-Tang Clan - "C.R.E.A.M."

12 L.L. Cool J - "I Can't Live Without My Radio"

11 Jay-Z - "Hard Knock Life"

10 Kurtis Blow - "The Breaks"

09 Salt-N-Pepa - "Push It"

08 Snoop Doggy Dogg - "Gin and Juice"

07 Notorious B.I.G. - "Juicy"

06 N.W.A. - "Straight Outta Compton"

05 Grandmaster Flash & the Furious Five - "The Message"

04 Run-DMC ft/ Aerosmith - "Walk This Way"

03 Dr. Dre - "Nuthin But A 'G' Thang"

02 Sugarhill Gang - "Rapper's Delight"

01 Public Enemy - "Fight the Power"

What struck me most while watching this was the number of songs that actually had really relevant messages. Jay-Z's Hard Knock Life may use a sample from Annie but it's really a story about the hard knock life of the 'hood. When you get into N.W.A and Public Enemy, these songs were all about the hard life of poverty stricken neighborhoods and the oppression faced by African Americans. 

I'm aware that there are current songs that have messages and all but what's important to note is that these rap songs were mainstream popular, Billboard 100 singles. 

The SO went to LA Rising to see Muse and Rage Against the Machine so I went to Youtube to watch some RATM songs. I absolutely love RATM. I saw them in 1999 right before they broke up and I still consider them my favorite rap/rock band. RATM is all about left wing activism and sticking it to the man. 

Killing in the name of ends with the chant "F*!k you I won't do what you tell me" An angry outburst that signifies our refusal to follow the norms of society and promotes individual expressionism.   

You know what's popular right now? #1 on the Billboard 100 is Party Rock Anthem. The inspiring and deep lyrics of the song are such. 

Party rock is in the house tonight

Everybody just have a good timeAnd we gonna make you lose your mind

We just wanna see ya shake that 

In the club party rock, lookin' for your girl? She on my jock

Nonstop when we in the spot, booty movin' weight like she on the block

Where the drank? I gots to know, tight jeans, tattoo 'cause I'm rock 'n' roll

Half black, half white, domino, game the money, op-a-doe

I feel like this ties in with the continual discussion of the age of entitlement that has set in. To summarize, researchers and academics have characterized a growing sentiment by the millenials (those born between the 1980's and 1990's) that they deserve everything and don't need to work hard for it. Self-fulfillment is more important than anything else. This coincides very well with the onslaught of rap and pop songs that laud the glamorous party life artists lead. Pop champagne bitches! Hell, this even coincides with the glut of reality TV in the mid 2000's that catered towards showcasing the wealth and riches of celebrities. MTV Cribs. Real Housewives etc. 

Our generation has lost the ability to look into the problems that people face. Before, we used music and art to bring to light the ills and injustices of society. Nowadays the focus is on making it rich and getting the F out of the 'hood. But really, what am I to say. I'm a guy that was raised in a nice suburban community where people had pools and tennis courts in their backyard. I can only lament that as a generation we've lost the ability to translate the important messages in our society into meaningful prose that could move millions. 

Encapsulate your relationship in 2 minutes

Every Argument Every Couple Ever Has EVER. from Casey Donahue on Vimeo.

I love Bill Nye

His facial expression as he realizes he's talking to a moron is hilarious. *Deep breath* Science is good for you Fox News.

Not a chameleon

I pride myself on being able to adapt to almost every situation. Being the small Asian man I can usually blend into the background and not really "stand" out. 

For the very first time in my life I came across a situation where I felt so out of place I didn't know what to do. 

Last Sunday I had dinner with my roommate from UM-Ross and his gf. After catching up with them and gorging myself on all you can eat pizza it was decided to have a drink at their go to Brazilian bar. 

Trudging across 14th street past Broadway, 6th and then finally near 9th avenue we stopped outside a indiscriminate looking bar. No real sign outside but the bouncer and doorman gave away the fact that this was indeed a bar. So far nothing out of the ordinary. Descending down the steps and to the bar my eyes cast a glance across the bar area. Something was off. 

All the girls seemed really tall. I'm not tall by any means but these girls made me feel Lilliputian. What the hell. All the girls were ridiculously beautiful. Tall, beautiful girls at a Brazilian hangout. I was starting to do the math in my head when my roommate, noticing my bug eyed look, said to me casually, "This is where all the Brazilian models hang out." Oh. My. God. 

I stood there by the bar and watched my roommate and his gf chat up the crowd. It seemed like they knew everybody in there. Surreal. Look over to the side. Hey, that guy looks familiar. Oh it's international soccer star Thierry Henry WTF.

The samba music boomed in the bar and I couldn't stop thinking that this was nuts. This is a world SO outside my normal social network that I just felt starstruck and dumbfounded or dumbstruck. I've heard that places like this exist but it was always part of some bad TMZ article so I kinda blew it off as society merely creating these fantasy worlds to support their celebrity worship. This was real. I got into a quick chat with one of my roommate's gf's friend and asked her "Are you a model too? Why of course she is. How stupid of me to even ask. 

I don't belong in bars like this. My self confidence can't take beatings like that when everyone, male and female, is perfectly proportioned and looked like they came out of a Diesel ad. I think I'm happy with my $5 Bud Lights at TGIF and slightly rotund men in their khakis and polos. But, I guess if there's ever another opportunity it would be rude for me to say no. You know, Brazilian hospitality and all. 

Did I mention it was hot in NYC

This is happening. Well, I guess even if it wasn't hot this could still happen.

I'm melting

It's hot. It's so hot that as I look outside there's nary a soul walking on the streets.

The last 3 days in NYC we've seen record temperatures. Hot enough that the government issued an extreme heat warning. This dog sums up the feelings of New Yorkers.

Car hot? Let the Japanese take care of it

Translation

1. Hot car?
2. Open passenger side window
3. Open and close drivers door 5-6 times. 
4. Instantly cool
5. Look around to see if anyone was watching you do an uncool thing. 
6. No one around? Stay cool. 

Getting punched in the face

Living in NYC is seriously like getting kicked in the face repeatedly. It's just sensory overload all the time. From the ridiculous amounts of people walking around, car horns, fire trucks, police sirens and random bums yelling all over the place it just seems like there's something going on all the time and that's just on my walk to and from work. 

Add in the bars, restaurants and social scene it really is a go-go-go place. I can see why people really enjoy the pace of life here and how they truly feel alive. I spent some time in LA two weekends ago and while I truly enjoyed my relaxing lunch on an outdoor terrace overlooking the Pacific Ocean, I couldn't help but feel like my brain was going to mush from the lack of stimuli. 

Never have I been more aware of the difference between the East Coast and West Coast. I love LA because of its casual, relaxed feel. I love NYC because I feel like I'm part of an extended washing cycle. NYC being the washer and all its inhabitants being the dirty clothes just tumbling around and around. 

I know I'm gonna get tired of NYC and look longingly at those shots of Santa Monica and downtown LA when they show Lakers games. Until then its back in the washer I go. 

This is absolutely hilarious.....

if you're from LA and particularly, the Westside.

Dun Dun Duuunnnnn

I'm getting married in September. This wedding has always seemed so far away. We got engaged 2 years ago right before I was to head off to ESADE. A bit of planning here. A bit of planning there. It never really felt like there was this huge gigantic, life-changing event in front of us.

I got my tux today and tried it on. Bowtie and everything. Seeing myself in front of the mirror it finally hit me.

OMG I'M GETTING MARRIED?!!?!?!

Posting to resume once I return from my whirlwind LA weekend. 

Corporate Social Responsibility aka Please Don't Hate our Company

To combat the laziness I've been feeling lately, I turn to my blog to get the mental juices flowing.

Like many other corporate entities, to appease main street America, my company sponsors and organizes a city-wide community outreach event. It's mostly for PR boosting and to stop people from gathering their torches and pitchforks when prices are raised or god forbid, the company makes money. I guess our situation is not as bad as banks though. I highly doubt cosmetics caused the global financial crisis. More like a certain Calabasas-based mortgage firm, which is now part of an evil banking empire. I kid, I kid.

Anyways, our day starts off bright and early at 9:30 as I head off towards the Lower East Side Ecology center, part of the 52 acre East River Park system.

Walking along the East River Park is actually quite nice as long as you don't mind a freaking highway right next to you.

Nothing like a 6 lane highway next to your park. Only in NYC.

In our company provided free t-shirts we were a noticeable group in the park. Ready to do some volunteer work. There were like 5 activities to choose from. Painting a mural. Planting trees. Weeding and planting. Mending fences. I figured the LES eco center didn't want a Picasso-esque (not in a good way) mural I chose to weed and plant a garden.

An even scarier, crappier version of that would be what a drawing of a girl would look like if painted by yours truly. Seriously, I got a C in sculpture in high school. 

All activities were grouped into small teams of 10 and thus I headed off with my team. As usual, I was the only male on the team. It is very different working in a mostly female company. Now that I think about it, over the last week I've been in about 8 big meetings, of which there were probably only about 6 males total across all meetings. I can't pinpoint exactly what is different but it's definitely not like my old job where there were no females working except for admin. Anyways, 

As the first stage of our activity was weeding, we were told what to yank out and what not to. Amongst those pictured above is the one you're not supposed to yank out. I'm glad they made it painfully obvious for us city-folk.

We got lucky and the weather was beautiful. I was a bit worried because the week prior to this we had a couple of days of 100+ degree days. With the Williamsburg bridge in the background it made the day quite enjoyeable.

I wish I had taken a before picture because it was pretty crappy. Weeds everywhere and there was no semblance of a real garden but we turned it into an area worthy of our overall city beautification project.

After 4 hours of hard, physical labor it was time for me to head home.

Along the way I passed under the Williamburg bridge. Apparently one of the few free bridges connecting Manhattan to the outlying boroughs.

In this shot you can actually see the UN building. It's the white rectangular building.

I found this neat trail but it was only like this for about 100 feet. I can't figure out why they built such a small section. I guess by Manhattan standards this is like Yellowstone though. Old Faithful replicated by the homeless gentlemen peeing all over the place while yelling obscenities at me. I love NY.

So this weekend it's back to LA to celebrate the wedding of one of my closest friends. I'm only gonna be in LA for about 40 hours so it'll be filled to the brim with stuff. Exciting.

TODAY IS OUR INDEPENDENCE DAY!!

Happy 4th everyone.

Oh the horror our kids face

The younger generations are growing up to be gigantic pu!%^es.



Glad that even that the lowest demographic of internet social network, youtube commenters emphatically dislike it as well.